SINGAPORE – Minister of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform (PANRB) Abdullah Azwar Anas met with Singapore’s Minister of Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo to discuss and exchange experiences related to the implementation of digital-based public services in both countries.
“The Singapore experience that Minister Teo has shared is almost the same as what Indonesia is doing. Singapore took a long time to integrate the government’s digital system. It takes time, seriousness, and hard work for the integration of digital systems in the government to be successful,” Anas explained after his visit to Singapore’s Ministry of Digital Development and Information, Wednesday (10/7).
Several main topics discussed were the role of the Ministry of PANRB as the Head of the National Electronic-Based Government System (SPBE) Coordination Team, Indonesia’s national digital government strategy, and Singapore’s “Smart Nation” Strategy.
Singapore is one of the earliest countries to adopt a digital mindset in transforming government, especially in developing citizen-centric public services.
The country has a National Public Service Portal called LifeSG to provide integrated government services and information managed by GovTech called Smart Nation Singapore.
“I believe the Singapore government’s experience can provide insight into how the strategy of accelerating digital transformation is carried out in an integrated manner in encouraging digital transformation in Indonesia,” he said.
Anas explained that the Ministry of PANRB currently has a mandate at the strategic level for policies on governance, institutions, bureaucratic reform, apparatus management, public services, and government performance accountability.
In the last five years, several digital government policies encouraged by the ministry have resulted in an increase in Indonesia’s E-Government Development Index (EGDI) from 107th to 77th in 2022.
Other progress made by Indonesia is the enactment of a Presidential Regulation to create GovTech Indonesia, INA Digital, which will coordinate data and service interoperability efforts across ministries so that they are no longer siloed by agency.
Furthermore, the Indonesian government will launch the first phase of the Public Service Portal that integrates various priority public services and Digital Public Infrastructure by September 2024.
“This meeting can strengthen relations and support each other to realize a more effective and responsive government for the welfare of our people, as well as open opportunities for Indonesia-Singapore cooperation in the aspect of digital government,” Anas concluded.
